


inscribed on your heart

by daeum, hanrenx, mysoulrunswithwolves



Category: NCT (Band), VIXX
Genre: Alternate Universe - Space, Androids, Awkward Flirting, Crossover Pairings, Fluff, M/M, Meet-Cute, Minor Bae Joonhyun | Irene/Song Jihyo, Strangers to Lovers, fan art included, happy birthday cat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-14
Updated: 2018-06-14
Packaged: 2019-05-23 05:11:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14927756
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daeum/pseuds/daeum, https://archiveofourown.org/users/hanrenx/pseuds/hanrenx, https://archiveofourown.org/users/mysoulrunswithwolves/pseuds/mysoulrunswithwolves
Summary: Doyoung’s stop on the planet Spyder may last a little longer than expected. This may or may not be directly related to the fact that he has never felt more at home, five galaxies away from the Milky Way.





	inscribed on your heart

**Author's Note:**

  * For [taekwoonskitten](https://archiveofourown.org/users/taekwoonskitten/gifts).



> Han and I wrote this for Cat in less than twenty-four hours, since she's a lovely human and it's her birthday today!! We love you baby <3  
> Cinny spent all day drawing the artwork for this fic. Please be sure and give it lots of love!!

Doyoung walked into the _Black Pearl_ cantina—or EXO-365 as it was known by its intergalactic star-code—and tried not to be overwhelmed by the staggering amount of non-human species in the bar.

It’s hardly his first time in an intergalactic watering hole like this one, but it _was_ his first time in a cantina that took up the better part of an island on the planet Spyder. Not to mention, one that was five galaxies away from his own Milky Way. Still, he had always wanted to visit the planet the humans called Spyder, located in the Navy and Gold galaxy.

Spyder was a lush, tropical planet. What made it unique, however, was the lack of daylight it had. The planet resided in an orbit that allowed for a perpetual twilight to wrap around the planet like a dusky blanket. It’d been on his list for a while now, and since tomorrow was a special day for him he figured it was a good a time as any to finally visit.

First, though, he needed a drink and a meal. He just had to figure out how to order something from the intimidating person behind the bar.

“What can i get you?” the bartender asked, his gold cat-eyes sizing Doyoung up in a way that made him feel naked.

“What do you have?” he replied, determined not to be thrown off by the twitching black ears half-hidden by wavy, waist-length black hair, or the way the bartender’s tail curled and flicked around his arm as he wiped a glass with a rag.

 _Silvestris,_ his memory supplied. A species native to the Navy and Gold galaxy.

He narrowed his eyes. “You’re human, yeah?” he set down the glass and rag to reach for a cocktail glass, quickly mixing up a drink that started out hot pink and ended up a deep, glowing purple by the time it was poured into the glass.

“Uh, yeah. My name is Doyoung,” he answered, warily taking the drink from him and eyeing it nervously. “What is this?”

“I’m called Minseok,” he smiled a sharp, saccharine grin, “and that’s a Milky Way cocktail.”

Doyoung took a tentative sip. It wasn’t made from anything he’d ever had before—certainly no alcohol they had back in his home galaxy—and it settled on his tongue with a darkly sweet flavor, felt like starlight slipping down his throat, giving him a floaty buzz in the back of his head like he was spacewalking through a nebula.

It was heavenly.

“Wow, this is amazing,” he remarked, nodding at Minseok in thanks.

Minseok’s ears twitched in acknowledgement. “What brings you so far from home, little human?”

“I’m exploring here on Spyder,” Doyoung said easily. “I’m need a meal and a place to stay tonight while I get my ship refueled for the trip home.” He watched as Minseok tapped quickly on the holoscreen he flicked on with his wrist, the personal screen winking to life in front of him as it projected from his holobracelet. Minseok keyed in a few words before flicking it off again.

“I’ve got a meal coming your way from the kitchens,” he explained, offering Doyoung a crooked smile. “I can’t give you somewhere to stay, although there is an inn on the other side of the island that usually has a spare room. It’s called the Heartshaker Inn.”

Doyoung nodded, flicking open his own holoscreen to send a message to his android Woozi, hoping the android would listen to him just this _one time_ , and book them a room there.

Minseok wandered off to serve a different patron, his fluffy black tail winding around his waist as he moved. Doyoung had the impolite urge to reach out and pet it.

Instead of getting his hand clawed off by an angry Silvestris, Doyoung turned to cast his gaze around the cantina, curiously noting the sheer amount of species in the room.

He was a very, very long way from home.

A flash of silver caught his eye.

Along the far wall, in a shadowed corner, was another Silvestris. He was hunched over a steaming mug of something, his silver locks falling into his eyes and his ears pinned back to his head, clearly saying he didn’t want to be approached. Sometimes Doyoung wished he had more obvious ways to signal other beings to his emotions.

“Ah,” said Minseok, making Doyoung jump slightly. “I see you’ve spotted Taekwoon.”

Doyoung turned to face Minseok. “A friend of yours?”

“No, not really.” Minseok shrugged, sliding a plate of food over to Doyoung. “He comes in every few days or so. Doesn’t talk to anyone, just drinks some tea and sits for awhile before leaving.”

“He’s your same species though?” Doyoung asked absently, tapping out a command to transfer a few credits to Minseok for the meal.

Minseok raised an eyebrow. “Are you friends with every human you meet?”

Well, he had a point there. His holobracelet beeped, a message from Woozi projecting on the skin of his arm that notified Doyoung their ship was refueled and secured at the port for the night. “Thanks for the food,” Doyoung said with a smile.

Minseok hummed in acknowledgement and wandered off, tail swishing behind him.

Doyoung dug into his food and watched the bar move around him while he ate. His eyes kept wandering back to the silver-eared Taekwoon, wondering what his story was. He was beautiful in a captivating way that only stoked Doyoung’s curiosity.

An insistent beep from Woozi urged him out the door once he’d finished his food, the message saying something about getting to the inn Minseok had mentioned before it closed for the night.

 

“This is your fault,” Doyoung said to Woozi.

“You must be mistaken. It’s not in my programing to err.” Woozi crossed his arms and glared up at Doyoung.

Doyoung gestured to the dimly lit interior of the inn that was visible through the glass windows. The door to the Heartbreaker Inn had been locked by the time Doyoung had shown up with Woozi, and although he could see people inside, they were too busy kissing each other to bother answering the door when he knocked.

They’d simply pointed at the closed sign blinking in the window, a cheery baby blue neon that seemed to be mocking him, without breaking their kiss.

"Woozi can you—"

"Nah."

“You don’t know what I was going to ask.” Doyoung huffed and reminded himself that punching Woozi would only break his hand. It was starting to get cold, and while Woozi’s circuits would _probably_ be fine, Doyoung and his human skin would _not,_ so shelter was necessary and he needed it quickly.

With a sound like a winding clock, Woozi rolled his eyes. “We can sleep in the ship. My charging port is there anyway.”

“Correction. _You_ can sleep on the ship. It’s going to be too cold for me to survive a night on the ship.”

Woozi shrugged with a whir. “Good luck, then. I’m going back to the ship.”

Doyoung gaped as Woozi turned around to walk away. He promptly collided with someone that was coming around the corner, knocking Woozi to the ground.

Doyoung was too nice to laugh, but he really wanted to.

“Are you okay?” The person asked, bending down to help Woozi back to his feet.

“It’s you,” Doyoung said, blinking as Taekwoon nervously brushed some dirt off of Woozi.

Taekwoon blinked slowly at Doyoung, his head tilting. “...Have we met?”

Doyoung shook his head. “I saw you at the _Black Pearl_ when I stopped in for directions to an inn.” He gestured to the closed sign and the general air of the inn. “I seem to be out of luck tonight, though.”

Taekwoon walked around Woozi to peer inside the inn. “Oh, yeah, Jihyo and Irene are like that.” He looked back at Doyoung and bit his lip. “I’ve got a room here, if you need a place to crash for the night.” He glanced down at Woozi, considering. “I’m not sure there’s room in the bed for your...robot.”

Woozi bristled. “I’m an android, you overgrown animal.”

Taekwoon’s tail bristled. “I’m not an animal!” He turned to Doyoung. “Your robot is very rude.”

Doyoung sighed. “I know.” He glared at Woozi. “He’ll sleep on the ship tonight. He needs to charge anyway.”

Woozi whirred in slight indignation, but turned to continue on his way back to the ship.

Takewoon frowned. “He’s short, too,” he said absently, like he was only now noticing Woozi’s height.

Woozi stiffened, then turned around to glare at Taekwoon. “I do not like this animal, Doyoung,” he huffed, then continued around the corner and out of sight.

“He also has very good hearing,” Doyoung chuckled.

Taekwoon blinked slowly at him. “I see. Well, you’re welcome to share my room. JinJin will be at reception in the morning and can get you into your room.”

Doyoung considered his options. Taekwoon seemed harmless enough, and it was better than freezing in the spaceship with Woozi snarking at him all night. “Yeah, okay. Lead the way.”

Taekwoon nodded once and led him to a side entrance, using a key to get in.

“This is it,” Taekwoon said, gesturing to the small room once they were inside. The bed was fairly large, at least, so it wouldn’t be the worst to share it with a stranger.

Doyoung has done more for less.

While Taekwoon ducked into the bathroom, Doyoung changed into his pajamas, pulling them from the backpack he’d brought along from the ship. When Taekwoon came out of the bathroom they traded, and Doyoung went into the bathroom to wash up for bed.

The room was dark when he came out, Taekwoon curled up under the covers as close to the wall as he could physically get without becoming a part of the wood.

Doyoung carefully slid between the sheets, sleep finding him much quicker than he expected.

 

Doyoung woke up three times that night. Only once did he wake up alone.

The first time, a deep, thrumming noise woke him, rousing him from a light sleep. He blinked awake in the dark of midnight to find a purring Taekwoon fast asleep on his chest, limbs splayed over Doyoung’s body as he slept. Doyoung snuggled back into the pillows,

His holobracelet woke him up for the second time. At first he thought the buzzing sensation was from Taekwoon, purring again in his sleep, but when his sleepy brain registered that the buzzing was coming from his wrist and not the warm body on his, he lifted the device to his face.

It was an incoming call. He quickly looked down at the sleeping Silvestris

With a sigh, Doyoung mumbled, “Accept call,” and blinked his eyes open.

“Happy birthday, or something,” Minghao grumbled by way of greeting, looking put out over the fact that he’d remembered the stardate and was wishing Doyoung a happy birthday, like Minghao wasn’t one of his most thoughtful friends. Doyoung rerouted the audio for the call to his inner-ear implant, hoping to keep Taekwoon from waking up.

“Thanks, Hao. How are you?” He kept his voice as soft as possible.

Minghao squinted at him. “Why are you whispering? Is someone there?”

Taekwoon’s purring hitched in his sleep, then resumed after he sneezed softly into Doyoung’s chest. Minghao grinned smugly. “You _are._ Who is it? Don’t tell me you hooked up with Ten again. We’ve talked about this, Doyoung. He’s an intergalactic playboy he’s not good for you.”

“It’s not Ten, and I didn’t hook up with anyone.” He rolled his eyes. “I met a Silvestris last night and he offered his room at the inn when reception was closed. He’s cuddly in his sleep, I guess, since he’s sleeping on top of me.”

“Wait, _what?”_ Minghao’s jaw dropped open and his eyes widened. “You’re currently in the presence of a Silvestris and you didn’t even _tell me?”_

Doyoung blinked in confusion. “What? I was supposed to?”

Minghao rolled his eyes and sighed with the weight of all three galaxies currently between them. “Doyoung, you _know_ I’m currently working on a piece on the Silvestris species for the Andromeda press. Tell me everything,” he demanded. “What’s he like? Is he talkative? Has he let you touch his ears?”

Doyoung looked down his nose at the sleeping Taekwoon. His ears _did_ look soft, lightly twitching in his sleep, and he reached out to run a finger over the point of one ear. “His ears feel like velvet,” he reported, “and he’s not very talkative? He just offered me a place to sleep and then fell asleep on me and now he’s purring.”

Minghao smiled gleefully, which was the most terrifying thing Doyoung had ever seen and he’s _seen shit._ “Excellent,” Minghao cooed, his fingers flying as he typed on something the holoprojection didn’t show. “Thank you for this valuable information. Anyway, happy birthday. Ciao.”

The projection flickered out before Doyoung could respond, and he let his arm flop back down to the bed with a sigh. He really should get up, check to make sure Woozi was charged and had taken care of their other arrangements for this trip, but Taekwoon was warm and before he knew it his eyes were slipping closed, drifting away into sleep.

When he woke for the third time, he was alone.

There was a note on the bedside table that he noticed once he sat up that read:  
  


_Lock the door after yourself. Jinjin should be at the front desk today to get you a room. Best breakfast is at Aroha cafe._

_Taekwoon_

Well, okay then.

 

The restaurant glowed a faint lilac and as Doyoung got closer, the smell that wafted through the air practically hypnotised him. He cracked a small smile at the comforting smell of pancakes that welcomed him as he entered the diner, the bell on the door tinkling as he stepped across the threshold. The place was busy and the wait staff zoomed through the crowds on rollerblades. His heart swelled. If anything from earth culture was translated onto other planets, he was infinitely glad it was old-school diners. As he scanned his eyes over the bright interior, he caught a flash of shining silver hair. His body tensed up slightly. Taekwoon was here. He thought that since Taekwoon had let him stay in his bed, perhaps he should return the favor and buy him breakfast.

“Hello?” a voice asked from his left, “I _asked_ if you were done standing there and wanted a table?”

“Oh! Sorry! Uh, well…” He looked at the waiter then over to Taekwoon’s table where he was sat alone, hands curled around a mug. “I think I will sit with my friend, actually. Thank you!” He flashed the waiter a big, gummy smile as an apology for the inconvenience he had been.

“Suit yourself,” the waiter mumbled, looking over his shoulder at the table Doyoung had been staring at. He kicked off and skated to the other side of the diner in a flash, leaving Doyoung still standing at the door. Doyoung started moving towards Taekwoon’s table before he was truly ready for it. Taekwoon’s ears perked up at the sound of someone approaching and he glanced up at Doyoung shyly. His eyes grew wider when he recognized Doyoung and they darted to the exit, the kitchen area, the bathroom, then back to Doyoung. Doyoung’s heart panged with the realization that Taekwoon was looking for an escape route. He pushed the sting of hurt aside as he arrived at the table, smiling brightly. “Hey! Fancy meeting you here,” Doyoung said, still standing, not sure if he was welcome to sit just yet.

“Oh. Hey. Uh…”

“Nice recommendation! This place looks amazing, very retro” Doyoung said, crinkling his eyes up as he shifted from one foot to the other.

“Yeah, sure thing.” Taekwoon still looked visibly on edge by Doyoung’s presence.

“Mind if I sit?” Taekwoon opened his mouth, shut it, opened it again, and the shut it once more and nodded twice. “Thanks.”

The awkward air between them felt as insufferable as the climate of the last planet he was on. That planet, intergalactic star-code NCT-127, had driven him slightly insane with the heat and humidity but had been worth the trip. He had fallen in love with the kids on the planet, they had called themselves the Dreamies. Before he left, they made him a pin to wear that Jisung, the youngest of the bunch, had drawn that said “The Dreamies’ Intergalactic Protector.” Doyoung kept the pin on him at all times to remember them and he had taken up the habit of running his fingers over it when he needed a confidence boost. Like right now, he had the pin clutched in his hand under the table.

“So, I wanted to thank you for letting me stay in your room last night. Woozi and I really appreciated it.”

“Your android can feel gratitude?”

“Uh no, he’s mostly grumpy and non-responsive.”

“Interesting.”

“Ah, I guess. He’s mostly fine, except when I need him to actually do something and he shuts off.”

“So, he is defective?”

“No, he genuinely decides to shut off voluntarily, which has proven to be annoying and oddly adorable. What can I say? I’m kind of a softie,” Doyoung let out a small breathy laugh and Taekwoon cocked his head slightly, seemingly perplexed by Doyoung’s fondness for such a difficult android. “He’s kind of the only person, er-thing, I really get to travel with. He’s like a friend to me.”

“How odd. I’ve never seen any being so enamoured by their machine. I have seen old human movies where males love their terrestrial automobiles, but this seems different.” Taekwoon said, analyzing the situation and staring with furrowed brows at Doyoung’s face.

“Well, I guess it’s a unique situation.”

“I suppose so.”

“So,” Doyoung started, sensing the end of one topic and hoping to seamlessly connect to another. He wanted to know more about Taekwoon, but didn’t want to spook him. Doyoung got the sense that Taekwoon was getting more comfortable, but if he made a sudden movement, Taekwoon might fly out the window with the sheer power of nervous energy. “My friend Minghao, he’s from Yabbay, he is doing a photo story on Silvestri.” Taekwoon hummed in response as he sipped his tea. “Yeah it’s super cool, it’s a piece about highlighting that they aren’t just cats, but beings with real jobs and families and stuff. On other planets they are sometimes discriminated against or people have weird preconceived notions about them. It differs from place to place, but there are so many here, is it the same way?”

“Oh uh, it’s better here for sure,” Taekwoon answered, not looking up from his tea.

“That’s good to hear. I would hate for anyone to feel out of place where they lived, ya know?”

“Yeah, I like it here.”

“Are you just visiting or do you live at the Heartshaker?”

Taekwoon looked out the window, “Ah, I guess I would like to live here, I’m not sure yet though.”

Doyoung kind of wanted to press him and ask why not, but he decided it might be better to keep things light. Before he could change the subject, the waiter sped up to their table and skidded to a stop on his rollerblades. He has his hair pushed up like a character from a 1950’s movie and was wearing a white shirt tucked into light wash jeans.

“Hey guys, my name is Tao, I’ll be your server for today, can I start you off with a drink?” He asked, sounding like he is reading from a script with the company-prescribed amount of enthusiasm.

“I’ll take a coffee if you have it earth style,” Doyoung said, meeting Tao’s cat-like eyes that shimmered a deep pink. He didn’t have a tail or cat-like ears, though so he must be some other species.

“Sure thing, doll” he said, slipping a notepad out of his pocket, jotting down the order. “Should I grab you a menu, hun? You look like a guy who could use a big stack of pancakes.” The corners of Tao’s mouth pulled up into a sly side smile as Doyoung nodded in response, flustered by the pet names.

“Tao stop flirting and refill my tea,” Taekwoon said, making Doyoung blush at the insinuation.

“Sure thing, sugar,” Tao winked as he picked up the mug and wheeled away towards the kitchen.

“Sorry about him. He’s… forward,” Taekwoon said, his hands seeming out of place without a mug to clutch onto. He picked up the menu eventually, just needing something to do with them.

“Ah, it’s okay, really. I’m sure it’s just part of the job,” Doyoung laughed out, trying his best to will the light blush away from his cheeks. The attention had made him a little embarrassed.

“Tao is especially flirty to new customers, trying to put them under his spell to squeeze tips out of them. It’s the pixie in him. Sorry if he made you uncomfortable.”

“No need to apologize for him, it’s really okay, trust me I’ve had worse. This planet seems relatively polite, I mean minus the innkeepers blatantly ignoring me and making out behind the counter.”

“Oh yeah, Irene and Jihyo. They are very much in love. It’s sweet actually.”

“Until you need a room, I guess” Doyoung huffed.

“Hey, you managed. Thank the stars I was so kind and let in a stray human and his rude android.”

“Thanks again for that. I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have slept if you hadn’t. Woozi would’ve complained all night.”

“Such an odd, small android.”

“By the way, if you meet him again, watch it with the small talk, you may lose a limb…”

Taekwoon’s eyes widened again, shining crystal blue, and reflecting the purples and pinks of the neon lights of the diner. Tao returned, bringing a cup of coffee for Doyoung and Taekwoon’s refilled mug, setting them on the table in front of them.

“Decided on food, sweetheart?” He asked, cocking out a hip.

“Pancakes sounds good,” Doyoung squeaked, flustered again by the attention.

“Taek? Anything for you, darling?” Taekwoon narrowed his eyes at him slightly.

“I’m fine with tea.”

“Wait, but I was going to buy you breakfast as a thank you for letting me stay with you,” Doyoung blurted. Tao’s eyebrows raised as he broke into a smirk.

“Oh how cute, our Taekwoon-ie snagged himself a charming little human!” Tao said, louder than necessary, ruffling Taekwoon’s hair.

“Tao. Don’t.”

“Oh fiiine,” he drawled, “I’ll leave you two be. How about a scone, Taekwoon? Hm? Let the nice boy buy you a scone.” Tao said, eyes sparkling once again.

“Fine, fine.” Taekwoon sent a glance at Tao that seemed to mean something along the lines of ‘speak again and you will regret it.’

Tao skated off again to put their orders in at the kitchen.

“So," Taekwoon started, “you are quite far from home.” Doyoung looked back to him, realizing this is the first time Taekwoon had initiated the conversation between them. Maybe Taekwoon did want him here after all.

“Yeah! I’m always travelling. I always felt like there is so much to see out there in the universe, might as well try to see as much as possible.” Doyoung said smiling and looking into his coffee. The viscosity seemed a little off to be earth style coffee, but he tried a sip anyway. He recoiled from the drink and stuck his tongue out in protest. Taekwoon’s shoulders shook across from him and Doyoung could feel the blush rising in his cheeks again. “I really should stop ordering earth style. It’s never quite right. It honestly always makes me feel a little homesick.” Doyoung confessed, words spilling from his mouth before he could catch them. He had probably over-shared but it was too late now.

“Ah, that’s unfortunate.” Taekwoon frowned slightly, “Do you want to try my tea? I’m not sure if a human would like it but…” he trailed off.

“Okay,” Doyoung said, releasing his grip on the coffee mug and reaching for Taekwoon’s. Their fingers brushed lightly as Taekwoon passed the cup over, and his ear twitched when they made contact. Doyoung thought it best not to think anything of it. Doyoung raised the mug to his lips and sipped a small amount of the tea. It was a floral taste, almost perfume-y. “Roses?”

Taekwoon hummed in response, the corners of his mouth turning up as Doyoung returned the mug, their fingers brushing again. “Perceptive.”

“It’s an earth thing I guess. Roses, I mean. Not perceptiveness. In fact, humans aren’t very perceptive at all.” Taekwon laughed at that and Doyoung felt his stomach fill with restless butterflies. “Woozi never fails to remind me of that,” Doyoung said, smile in full force now, laughing lightly.

“You don’t seem nearly as daft as textbooks make you out to be,” Taekwoon mused, tail settling into his lap. Doyoung hoped that meant he was comfortable. For some reason, Doyoung felt a small tug inside his to protect Taekwoon, or at least make him comfortable. Hearing him laugh was like listening to a favorite song and winning fifty bucks from a scratch-off lottery ticket at the same time.

“Well thanks,” Doyoung said, laughing as he pushed the coffee further away from him on the table. “So you don’t live here but you might like to, why the hesitation?”

“I’m just not sure this place feels like home yet.” Taekwoon said, his tail flicking up and down across his lap.

“Understandable,” Doyoung said, nodding. He really did get it. Nowhere but earth had ever felt like home, NCT-127 came close because of how loved he felt. He had realized there that perhaps it wasn’t the place that made the home, but the people. “So what do you do when you aren’t drinking tea?” Doyoung said, pulling his legs up to cross them on the booth bench.

“Oh,” Taekwoon let out a small laugh, “I write poetry here and there. Nothing huge, just little poems for a book I’m working on.”

Doyoung ooo-ed and said “That’s so cool! I’ve not really read much poetry, but I’m sure it’s great!”

“Ah, it’s probably all garbage, honestly,” Taekwoon said shaking his head, his hair falling down into his eyes.

“I doubt it! You seem very poetic,” Doyoung said, smiling at him and scrunching up his nose like it was punctuation to the sentence. A blush rose across Taekwoon’s cheeks before he reached for his mug to sip tea for a few moments.

“Well, thank you, I guess. That’s sweet of you to say.” Now Doyoung was blushing. Which was, of course, the perfect moment for Tao to return to the table.

“Awww, you guys are cute,” he said, setting down a plate of pancakes in front of Doyoung and a scone in front of Taekwoon. Neither of them protested against him this time and he skated away once again with a knowing smile on his face.

They ate their breakfast and exchanged more casual conversation, the tension that lingered from earlier in the morning, dissipating over time.

“So, I was think of heading to the black sand beaches today,” Doyoung began as he set down his fork, having thoroughly demolished the stack of pancakes, “would you like to come with me?” Taekwoon wrinkled his nose and the hair on his tail bristled at the idea.

“I’m not really the biggest fan of water.”

“Ah, yeah. That makes sense I guess.” Doyoung murmured, visibly disappointed, his shoulders sagging a bit.

Taekwoon’s ears twitched in his direction, his brow furrowing in thought. “Do you need someone to show you where they are?”

“Oh, I’ll be fine,” Doyoung said before he could think, “I’ll just have Woozi look up the coordinates.”

Taekwoon’s ears drooped, and he bit his lip.

Doyoung thought quickly. “Then again, Woozi will probably give me the wrong directions just to spite me. Would you be willing to show me the way?”

It was magical, the way Taekwoon’s ears flicked up and his expression lightened into poorly disguised happiness. “I have some time,” he replied. “I could show you the way.”

Doyoung smiled.

 

In all of his travels, nothing could have prepared Doyoung for the sight that greeted him when he saw the beach for the first time.

Black, glittering sand stretched for miles in either direction, the gentle indigo waves of the ocean breaking with soft crashes against the obsidian shoreline. Doyoung wasted no time in ditching his shoes, rolling up the cuffs of his pants to walk up to the waves clinging to the sand with their foamy fingers. Beyond the ocean, the skyline melted from a dusky mauve into the violet of the water, stars glittering and winking as the two moons of Spyder bathed the landscape in hues of silver and blue.

It was like standing in the middle of a nebula, and Doyoung felt awe sweep through him like a tsunami.

The water lapped at his toes, warm enough to make his skin tingle. “Taekwoon!” He called, wading further in, “you should join me! It’s so wonderful.” He turned back to the shore when there was no answer.

Taekwoon was standing a good twenty-five meters from the waterline, tail curled around one leg and his ears flat against his head. “I’m fine right here,” he called back, offering Doyoung a tight-lipped upward tick of his mouth.

Doyoung walked back to him. “You don’t want to swim?”

Taekwoon widened his eyes and shook his head. He reached into his satchel and withdrew a pen and notebook. “I’ll sit here and write. You have fun in the,” he paused, shuddering, “ _water.”_

Doyoung tilted his head as Taekwoon sat down in the cool sand. “Okay,” he finally said. He shucked off his shirt and dropped it in Taekwoon’s lap. “Watch my stuff?” he asked, quickly stripping out of his pants and throwing them at Taekwoon’s face as he backed away.

Taekwoon sat staring at him, lips slightly parted, a light flush across his cheekbones, with one of Doyoung’s pant legs clinging to one silver ear.

Doyoung laughed at the sight before running right into the water, sighing happily as the warm water engulfed him with the heady smell of chrysanthemums in bloom. If he thought standing on the shore was like being in the middle of a nebula, then floating on the gentle rise and fall of the waves and staring up at the swirling map of colors and stars above him was like soaring through one.

Time began to lose meaning as he floated among the stars reflected in the indigo waters, but after a long moment of pure bliss, Doyoung righted himself in the water, spinning around until he could locate Taekwoon. He’d floated quite a distance away, so he began to swim back to Taekwoon, curious what he’d been doing while Doyoung was swimming.

So preoccupied was he with thinking about Taekwoon that he didn’t notice the surfboard until it was nearly taking off his head.

“Watch out!” a voice yelled, making Doyoung pull up short and narrowly avoid a nasty collision with a surfer.

Said surfer fell off his board with a rather impressive cartwheel before landing in the waves with a mighty splash. Doyoung swam to him as he resurfaced. “Are you okay?” he asked the sputtering man.

“I’m fine,” he replied, waving off Doyoung’s concern and flicking his hair from his eyes. “Not the first time I’ve wiped out.” He looked at Doyoung for the first time. “Are you okay? Did I hit you?” He squinted at Doyoung. “Are you...human?”

“I’m fine,” Doyoung assured him. “And yes, I am. My name is Doyoung.”

“Minho.” He reached for his board. “We don’t get many humans this end of the universe.” He pulled himself up onto the board, straddling it as he peered at Doyoung curiously.

Out of the water, Doyoung could see the faint pattern of scales over his shoulders, his forearms, down his back and sides. Minho followed his gaze and smiled back at Doyoung. “Never seen a selkie before?”

Doyoung shook his head. “I didn’t know they lived this far out.” He’d heard about them, of course, but he didn’t think they ever left their home planet in the Cerulean galaxy.

“Hear that, Hoseok?” Minho asked, looking down into the water just over Doyoung’s shoulder. “He’s never met a Selkie before.”

“Does he know you’ll drag him into the ocean if he give you the chance?” A new voice asked, from right behind Doyoung.

He spun around with a yelp, coming face to face with a mega-watt smile.

“Hi!” Who he presumed was Hoseok said brightly. One webbed hand raised out of the water to wave at him. “I’m Hoseok. What’s it like having two legs?”

Doyoung blinked at him. “Um, fine?” He didn’t know how to answer that. Hoseok had vivid red hair, golden yellow scales around his eyes and gills fluttering gently on his neck.

Hoseok nodded like that was a perfectly reasonable answer to his question. “I get that. Must be cool to run and stuff. But you suck at swimming, no offense.”

Doyoung gaped.

“Oh, stop bragging Hoseok,” Minho said with a laugh. “We get it, your fins are pretty.”

Hoseok beamed. His teeth were slightly pointed. “Are we gonna eat him?”

Doyoung started to subtly swim away from the two of them.

“No, Hoseok, we’re not going to eat him,” Minho said, rolling his eyes. “Go and eat a minnow or something, you’re scaring the human.”

Hoseok stuck out his tongue before diving beneath the waves. Doyoung gasped as the red and gold of Hoseok’s tail breached the waves, slapping the surface of the water and splashing Doyoung and Minho before he disappeared from sight.

“Grab on,” Minho instructed. “I’ll tow you back to shore.”

Taekwoon met him right were the water sank into the sand, his tail flicking back in forth in worry. “Are you okay?” he asked as Doyoung waved goodbye to Minho.

Doyoung shook water out of his hair, laughing when Taekwoon jumped away to avoid the drops. “I’m fine. I met a merman!”

“Hmmmm, fish,” Taekwoon murmured, licking his lips.

Doyoung smiled, ruffling up Taekwoon’s silver locks before he could think better of it. “Come on, let’s head back. I’m getting hungry.”

Taekwoon pouted and fixed his hair, but grabbed his things, throwing Doyoung’s clothes at him before heading up the path, leaving Doyoung to scramble after him.

  


“I swear you’d like the water if you tried it. It’s not that scary.”

“I’m not scared! I just don’t enjoy being wet. Call me stereotypical but I will always pass on water activities,” Teakwoon chuckled and Doyoung’s shoulders shook. His fingers were hooked into the backs of his shoes, leaving him walking barefoot back towards the inn. Eventually the sand turned to a dirt path which turned to the cool pavement of the inn’s walkway. The cold air of the eternal twilight made Doyoung shiver.

“It always feels like night time here,” Doyoung mused, “how do people have a normal sleep schedule?”

“Define normal,” Taekwoon said, as their shoulders brushed. They were probably walking closer than strictly necessary, but neither of them moved to change the distance.

“Fair point,” Doyoung said “I guess that’s an earth thing, huh?”

“Nah, I’m just messing with you,” Taekwoon huffed out a little laugh, ”Most people seem to follow earth time here, which is odd seeing how far we are from your Milky Way.”

“So diners and a circadian rhythm are the legacies left by my home planet, how odd,” Doyoung said, stopping in front of his room, about to open his mouth to invite Taekwoon in or see if he would give him his holobracelet contact info or something along those lines, Doyoung hadn’t figured out what he would say yet.

“Meet me on the roof of the inn in an hour, okay?” Doyoung blinked twice, surprised by the sudden plan provided by Taekwoon.

“Oh, uh, yeah sure!” Doyoung recovered, and flashed a giant smile at him, eyes closed and gums on full display. Taekwoon may have purred. That, or a dryer had started up in one of the rooms nearby.

 

After showering, Doyoung looked at his holobracelet. He still had thirty minutes to wait before he would meet Taekwoon on the roof. He let his arm fall back to his side and he walked over to the trunk Woozi had delivered for him. He picked out a white collared shirt and pulled on a muted pink jumper over top. He also pulled on his black jeans and his traveler's boots and turned to look at himself in the mirror. He ran his hands up to smooth down his hair, breathing out a nervous breath.

“I’m not nervous,” he said aloud, trying to convince himself.

“You sound nervous.” Doyoung nearly jumped out of his skin when Woozi’s voice rang in his in-ear.

“Woozi! Stop eavesdropping!” Doyoung shouted back at him, putting his hand on his hips.

“I am merely collecting data.”

“No, you are not. You are judging me with your little judgy face on. I can’t see you but I know you have your judgy face on,” Doyoung said wagging his finger in front of him to make his point.

“I have no such thing.” Doyoung huffed, rolling his eyes at the blatant lie. Woozi’s voice came in again, softer this time. “Why are you nervous, Doyoung?” Doyoung sighed and ran his hands through his hair again.

“I don’t know. This feels like the start of something. Something nice. I don’t want to screw it up.”

“You are a very capable human individual when compared to others. I’m sure you won’t screw it up.” Woozi said, the words “screw it up” sounding like he had put air quotes around them.

Doyoung couldn’t help the fond smile that spread across his face. “Thanks Wooz, I’ll keep that in mind.” He glanced at his holobracelet again. Ten minutes. He spent the remaining time sitting on his bed, tapping his feet and running his hands across his thighs, nervous energy bubbling under his skin as the minutes ticked away.

At three til, he jumped up and strided towards the door before really mentally preparing himself. He wound his way through the hallway, finding the stairs at the end of the hallway. After a few flights, he got to the door labelled “Roof Access” and tentatively pushed it open. The sight that greeted him had tears prickling at the corners of his eyes before he knew what was happening. In the middle of the roof, Taekwoon was sat on a blanket, lighting the last candle of a birthday cake. At the sound of the door Taekwoons ears had twitched his direction, which was followed by the turn of his head. Doyoung met Taekwoon’s eyes for a moment, feeling his heart swell to a dangerous size below his ribcage, then looked down to the cake and back up to him. “What did-How did you-What-” Doyoung stuttered, walking towards Taekwoon.

“I heard your friend wish you happy birthday this morning,” Taekwoon said, a blush rushing to his cheeks and ears pulling back against his head.

“You-you heard all that? I didn’t-I didn’t know you were awake. Oh my god. I touched your ears. I’m so sorry,” Doyoung rambled feeling overwhelmingly touched and also embarrassed at the same time.

“Sorry for eavesdropping and then pretending I was asleep. I should’ve told you.” Taekwoon bent down to retrieve the cake from the ground and held it in front of him. “Happy Birthday, Doyoung. I hope it was okay,” he said smiling.

“It was perfect,” Doyoung said, smiling at the cake and then at Taekwoon, “thanks for this. You didn’t have to.”

“I thought I should. Make a wish.” Taekwoon smiled at him and held the cake out a little further. Doyoung took a deep breath and sent a silent wish up to the stars. He blew the candles out and looked at Taekwoon, smiling at him with an overwhelming fondness that he could feel thrumming through his veins. He had an urge to reach over and scratch behind Taekwoon’s ear. He followed the feeling and allowed his had to come up and around Taekwoon’s head pausing momentarily, meeting Taekwoon’s eyes with a silent question. Taekwoon bowed his head slightly to give him access to his right ear. Doyoung smoothed his hand over his hair and scratched his fingers lightly against the base of his ear. Taekwoon hummed at the feeling. Doyoung let his hand drop after a few moments and took the cake from Taekwoon, moving back to the blanket Taekwoon had laid out.

“This is so nice of you Taekwoon, truly.” Doyoung sat down, patting the spot next to him. Taekwoon sat down too. “Why the roof?”

Taekwoon looked up at the sky, “The stars seem the brightest here. I found it a few days ago and have spent a lot of time up here since then.”

Doyoung nodded, following his gaze upwards. The Navy and Gold galaxy shined bright against the dusky sky. The sky was dotted and streaked with luminous stars, shimmering gold against the dark blue universe. Light pinks and oranges floated through the constellations. Doyoung laid on his back, his arms splayed out on his sides; Taekwoon followed suit, their pinkies brushing as he adjusted himself. Doyoung’s breath hitched and he turned his head to look at Taekwoon, Taekwoon doing the same. An easy smile came across both of their faces and Taekwoon linked his hand with Doyoung’s. They laid like that until time seemed abstract as the stars shifted in the sky, comets streaking gold through the navy.

“Thank you for this.” Doyoung squeezed his hand and Taekwoon returned it.

“Thank you, too.” Doyoung didn’t quite know what the thank you was for, but he didn’t ask and shuffled a little closer, tucking his arm under Taekwoon’s. “I wrote you a poem.”

Doyoung propped himself up on an elbow and looked down at him, his eyes reflecting the stars.

“You wrote me a poem?”

Taekwoon hummed in response, reaching over to the notebook that lay next to the forgotten cake.

“It needs work…” Taekwoon prefaced, flipping through the pages of the small black book. Taekwoon took a deep breath as he found the page. “Just-just don’t laugh.”

“I won’t laugh, I swear,” Doyoung said, rubbing his thumb over Taekwoon’s knuckles.

“Okay,” Taekwoon took another deep breath then began, trying his best to hide the shakiness in his voice.

“You are the Sun

Perhaps, I am the Moon.

Are we eclipsing?

Or are we inscribed on each other’s hearts?”

He finished, looking up at Doyoung who felt like he might cry.

“It’s beautiful, Taekwoon.” Doyoung said, lifting his unlinked hand up to pull him into a hug. “That’s the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me.” Doyoung laid back, hand still around Taekwoon, bringing him to rest his head on his chest. “You think I’m the sun?”

Instead of answering, Taekwoon nuzzled his face into Doyoung’s chest. Doyoung stroked his ears once again. He thought briefly that he would like to spend a little more time on this planet. He’d never given much thought to the beauty of the stars—he’d seen so many in his travels—but something about them seemed so special now.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked it cat <3 You're such a dear friend and I couldn't imagine life without your sunshine smile. I love you kitty cat <3<3  
> -Kiki
> 
> Cat!! I hope you have a lovely birthday! You are such a special friend to me and I am so glad to have met you in these vast interwebs! You deserve all the stars in the sky! I hope you didn’t sob too hard while reading this lol :3 ~Yours truwuly -Han <3 
> 
> Cat - Happy birthday to the sweetest and loveliest person in the galaxy!! You’ve brought me so much laughter and uwus even though you try to kill me on the regular (fuck it up kenneth). I hope your day is filled with sunshine because it’s what you deserve. Since we can’t be there to party it up with you, we have enlisted a task force of all your biases to convey our ENDLESS LOVE. Thanks for existing babe I couldn’t have asked for a better Trash Buddy :’)  
> -Cinny
> 
> See Cinny's amazing art [here!](https://twitter.com/tfvci/status/1007141811540897792)
> 
> Find Kiki on [Tumblr](https://mysoulrunswithwolves.tumblr.com) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/_xKikix)
> 
> Find Han [here](https://twitter.com/hanrenx)
> 
> Find Cinny [here](https://twitter.com/tfvci)
> 
> Check out the pinterest board for those sick intergalactic aesthetics [ here ](https://www.pinterest.com/liaoxinhui/super-secret-bday-project/)


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